


Dancing Around the Truth

by MissScarlett75



Category: Martiniski, Stydia - Fandom, Teen Wolf (TV), teen wolf - Fandom
Genre: Banshee Lydia Martin, F/M, Fluffy Ending, Forever and always in love, Gen, Lydia Martin is in love with Stiles Stilinski, Lydia's just too scared to admit it, Lydia-centric, Martiniski - Freeform, Multi, Other, POV Lydia, Romantic Fluff, Stydia, Stydia Forever, Teen Wolf, Twisted and Fluffy Feelings
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-07-10
Updated: 2014-07-10
Packaged: 2018-02-08 05:26:29
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,914
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1928307
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissScarlett75/pseuds/MissScarlett75
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Lydia has feelings for Stiles, that much is obvious, especially to Kira and Scott.  But Stiles is with Malia.  Should Lydia tell Stiles how she feels? At the School Spring Formal, Lydia might get her chance. But will she take it? And is it the best time to tell Stiles?  When IS a good time to tell Stiles, if any?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is in a series of four parts

“You’re going to the dance, right?”

“Hmm?” Lydia wasn’t paying attention. She had spend the last ten minutes staring at the Chemistry question in front of her. Her notebook was in her lap, legs propped up at the end of Kira’s bed, and pencil in hand, so she certainly _looked_ like she was being productive. But instead, she was thinking about Stiles and those beautiful eyes of his. Nowadays, they had more of a haunted look in them ever, especially after Stiles’ possession. But still, the way they seemed to just light up whenever he saw her…

“Lydia, hello?” Kira asked. She actually leaned over from her perch against the pillows and waved her hands in front of Lydia’s face.

“Huh?” Lydia blinked as Kira’s long black hair suddenly blocked her vision.

“Are you going to the dance?” 

“Oh! No, I’m not,” Lydia said, immediately turning back to the unsolved problem.

Kira stared at her. “You, of all people, not going to a dance?” Lydia ignored her and pretended to be immersed in her homework. Kira narrowed her eyes at Lydia. “This has to do with Stiles, right?”

“No way!” Lydia said defensively. She flushed, realizing how fast it slipped out of her mouth. Could she be any more obvious?

Kira stared at Lydia. “I don’t believe it,” she said.

“Well, believe it,” Lydia snapped.

Kira laughed. “I don’t,” she said, crossing her arms over. “This is totally about Stiles.” Lydia ignored her, while an annoying smile grew on Kira’s face. “You know, Lydia, I may not be a genius like you, but that doesn’t mean I’m a complete idiot, either.”

Lydia rolled her eyes. Kira was definitely more perceptive than she gave her credit for and was nowhere near the awkward little innocent girl she appeared to be. “Ok, maybe it’s a little bit about Stiles,” she mumbled under her breath.

“More than just ‘a little bit’,” Kira said, making air quotes at the latter words.

Lydia, now frustrated, blew out air from her mouth. “Fine, ok? Yes, it’s entirely because of Stiles. Happy?” Lydia was now sitting upright in the chair, breathing heavily. She glared at Kira.

Kira, a little taken aback, held up her hands. “Ok, ok, no need to get all nasty with me, Lydia,” she said with a smirk. “But yes, I’m happy, because I am, indeed, right.”

“Oh, whatever,” Lydia said. She pursed her lips and barely looking at the problem, scribbled down the answer. Kira was enjoying this interrogation way too much for her liking.

“Do you have a dress?” Kira persisted. Her homework lay beside her, already completed. Kira was smart, too. Not a genius like Lydia, but most of the time she certainly knew what she was doing. Usually Lydia was done with their assignments first, but even Lydia wasn’t immune to distractions. And these days, Lydia had many, all of which had to do with one person: Stiles.

“No,” Lydia said flatly. “Because I’m not going. I don’t have a date anyway.”

“Are you seriously going to let that stop from you going?” Kira asked. 

“Yes, I am,” Lydia said, not quite meeting Kira’s gaze.

“Look,” Kira said, “if it really bothers you that much, I’ll ditch Scott and we’ll both go solo. It’s not a big deal. I’ll call Scott now.” Kira, totally unfazed, reached over to her cell phone.

Lydia was appalled. “What are you doing?”

Kira rolled her eyes. “I’m going to call Scott I’m not going,” she said. “I literally just said that, didn’t I?” 

Lydia shook her head. “No, don’t! Don’t you dare!” She held up a finger and shook it violently at Kira, feeling a little silly at doing so. Kira ignored her and started texting. Lydia grabbed the phone from Kira’s hand. 

“Why do you even care? I’m doing this for you,” Kira said matter-of-factly, eyeing the phone.

“That’s just it,” Lydia said. “I can’t let you do this to Scott. After everything we’ve been through, he needs this normalcy in his life. Heck, we all do. Just go with him, please.” 

Lydia herself was even surprised to hear the pleading tone in her voice. They certainly needed whatever they could to forget about the nightmares from their past. A dance would certainly work wonders for Scott and the rest of the gang. Her? Not so much, considering the circumstances.

Kira’s eyes flashed, which always indicated when she had a idea. This time was certainly no different. 

“Fine, here’s a proposition for you,” she said, leaning forward in anticipation, “I’ll go with Scott, if you go to the dance. I don’t care if you go with a date or not, as long as you go.”

“Whatever,” Lydia said, “I’ll do it, if it matters that much to you.” She was annoyed but tired of talking about the stupid dance anyway. If it got Kira off her back, then she’ll go. It didn’t mean she’ll actually dance, or if she’ll even stay that long, especially with no date and Stiles being there with Malia, but Kira didn’t need to know that. 

“Great!” Kira said excitedly. “Looks like we both get what we want, don’t we?” She clasped her hands and grinned. 

“Oh, yeah, totally,” Lydia said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. She rolled her eyes, but as she stared down at the Chemistry question before her, she tried to hide a smile. Kira’s excitement was certainly infectious. Maybe it wasn’t such a bad idea to go to the dance after all. She could attend just for a little bit of fun while avoiding Stiles in the process, and then leave. That could work. Lydia stared down at her homework.

_If the formula for potassium chlorate is KClO3 and the formula for Magnesium Fluoride is MgF2, then what is the formula for Magnesium Chlorate?_

Piece of cake. Lydia shook her head. Seriously? Was this AP Chemistry class created for morons or something? She was in Advanced Placement not the regular Chemistry. She shook her head and hastily put down Mg(ClO3)2 and made her way to the next question, already completely fed up with this stupid assignment.

“So…how about we go pick out that dress?” Kira asked a few minutes later, once she figured Lydia had cooled down a bit from the announcement of the supposedly brilliant plan.

“I guess,” Lydia said reluctantly. “Just give me 20 minutes to finish these problems.” 

Lydia forced her brain to focus on the Chemistry chemical equations at hand, no matter how dry and boring it was, and true to her word, completed the rest of them within 20 minutes.

Lydia pushed back her homework. “Ok, let’s get this over with,” she said, already shouldering her bag. 

Even though Lydia loved shopping, she wasn’t quite looking forward to looking for a dress to a dance that she didn’t want to go to. It went entirely against the Lydia Martin logic. But on second thought, the Lydia Martin logic went out the window the minute Scott and Stiles came into her life and turned it upside down. Lydia supposed she might as well go along with the shopping, because really, did it matter what she was shopping _for_? It was still shopping after all.

Kira did not waste any time. The minute they entered the mall a while later, Kira went directly to _Lord & Taylor_ and from there, marched through all the other displays before finally ending up among the cocktail dresses.

“Every girl’s dream,” Kira said dryly. “Or rather, the girly-girl’s dream. You know I’m not into all this sequin-y fancy and tight stuff.” She held up the corner of a skirt on a dress that was so sparkly and bright that Lydia felt like she needed sunglasses. Kira made a face. 

Lydia nodded in agreement. “Way too much,” she commented. 

They browsed through the selections, their arms becoming more and more burdened with several prospects. Luckily, they soon found their way to the dressing rooms, where Kira wasted no time in dumping the dresses in the corner of the first room.

“God, who know dresses were even that heavy?” Kira frowned, running her hands up and down her sore arms.

“Welcome to the world of shopping,” Lydia said, “I take it you don’t get out much, do you?”

Kira laughed. “Apparently not.” Shaking her head, Kira went into her dressing room to start trying the dresses on.

Lydia went into the adjacent room and sorted through her pile. She had her eye on one dress in particular already, but she forced herself to try on all the dresses.

Every so often, her and Kira commented back and forth through the wall between them. For each, there were several misses, where dresses couldn’t make it up their hips or made their boobs look funny or just straight out fit disastrously on them. 

But the ones that managed to fit, Kira and Lydia modeled for each other.

“I like it,” Lydia said, after giving Kira the once over in a midnight blue knee-length dress. It was strapless with a black ribbon around the waist, with a bow in the back. “Simple and understated, but classy.” 

“Yeah, me too,” Kira said. “Thank god! I was getting worried I wouldn’t find a dress that would fit, let alone one I would even like.”

“Oh, please,” Lydia said, “no matter what, there will always be _something_ out there that fits you. Never forget that. We live in a capitalist society after all. How would they make their money if their clothes didn’t fit anyone?”

Kira paused. “Good point,” she said. “So, I take it you found a dress yourself?” 

“Of course,” Lydia said. “This is me we’re talking about here. By the time I could walk, I was dragging my mom to stores and picking out clothes for myself. I think I can find a simple party dress.”

Kira shook her head, smiling. “Obviously I forgot who I was talking to.”

“Apparently,” Lydia said, smiling. Kira was no Allison, but it surprised even Lydia herself how close they had become recently. At the end of the day, Kira was certainly not a bad friend to have around. Lydia even found herself having fun with her. Plus, she could teach her all about being a girly-girl, and what was more fun than that?

“Ok, ok, just show me what you got!” Kira said, waving her hand at Lydia to get on with it.

Lydia wasted no time in returning to the dressing room and slipping into the dress. It was unlike anything she’d ever worn before and that’s why she loved it. 

She stepped out and Kira’s eyes widened. “This is the one, isn’t it?”

“Yes,” Lydia said, twirling around and watching in delight at her reflection in the mirror. The dress was red, a color Lydia rarely worn because of her hair, but yet, that’s why she chose it this time. The top half was lace, with a square scalloped neckline, which made her boobs look great. The dress was figure hugging but yet still ended in a little flare at the end. 

“Well,” Kira said after five minutes of the two of them staring at themselves in the mirror. “Our work here is done, right?”

Lydia smiled. “Close, but not quite.”

It was two hours later before Lydia led them out of the mall. She had insisted on shoe shopping and searching for the perfect jewelry to go with their dresses, as well as the perfect hair accessories and makeup. After all, what outfit would be complete without these necessities?

“Remind me to never go shopping with you again,” Kira said half joking. “My mom is going to kill me when she sees the credit card bill.”

“The price of beauty is quite an expensive one,” Lydia said solemnly. “But it’s the sacrifice us girls have to make.”

“Well, this will be the only sacrifice I’ll be making for a while,” Kira said, “especially considering how I literally just spent an entire month’s allowance within the span of 3 hours.”

“You don’t think I haven’t had the same problem?” Lydia asked. “You got a lot to learn, Kira, but believe me, I can teach you. I can show you how to budget, so you can go on shopping sprees like this. Just stick with me and you’ll soon know it all.” She wrapped an arm around her and gave her a quick squeeze. 

“Ok, then,” Kira said, “you are officially hired as my teacher. Teach away!” She opened her arms wide in a welcoming gesture.

“Gladly.” Lydia grinned, feeling happier than she’s felt in a long time. She could definitely get used to having Kira around.


	2. Chapter 2

Lydia stood outside of the school gym, suddenly feeling rather shaky with nerves. Never in her life she would have anticipated ever attending a school dance alone. She was Lydia Martin after all. Lydia Martin always had some sort of arm candy alongside her, whether she liked the guy or not. 

This was all Kira’s fault. Or rather Scott’s. He totally spaced on the time to get to Kira’s and when Kira called him, he wasn’t even ready yet. Kira had gone to his house to help him get ready since he was clearly running _very_ late. Recently, Scott was late to everything. He hadn’t been himself since Allison’s death, but then, who was?

Lydia sighed. She just felt so alone without anyone at her side. Seriously, how did people do it? This was so unusual for her, she almost felt like she was living a dream; someone else’s sad pathetic little life. But then, she supposed stranger things certainly _have_ happened. However, it didn’t make it any easier to handle.

Standing there now, she figured she should have thought of getting a date herself. Even now, it wasn’t too late, obviously, since she could get any guy. But somehow, Lydia just didn’t feel like it. After everything that happened to them, worrying about a date to a school dance was just stupid. It just wasn’t important.  
Her friends, now that was important to her. And what she wanted more than anything was her best friend. Too bad the one thing she wanted most in the world was impossible to get back. Allison was gone. That was the past. But this, right now, was the present. And Lydia had a dance to go to.

_Ok, Lydia, you can do this._ Her hands shook but she took another deep breath, tossed her hair over her shoulders, and flounced into the room.

The gym was decorated with lots of spring colors, for it was Spring Formal after all. Green streamers were hung along the ceiling and identical green balloons were set up at the tables laden down with food and drinks. There were also sky blue decorations interspersed among all the green as well, though not nearly as many.

Lydia couldn’t help but be glad the dress she was wearing wasn’t either of these colors. Nothing was worse than blending in by wearing the colors the school deemed cool enough to decorate the gym with. 

Kids turned to look at her as she stepped even further into the gym. Immediately, there were whispers and Lydia flushed. A few other people, mere acquaintances, called out to her, saying “Hi” but besides that, no one actually came to relieve her of her solo status. Totally figured. Everyone in this damn school was all talk and no action. She should know, after all, she used to be one of those girls.

Lydia continued to walk through the crowd, head held high. She immediately stationed herself by the drinks table and loaded up on the punch. She stood a mere few feet away from the crowd there, so it wasn’t obvious she came alone. Surprisingly, it was easier than Lydia expected to blend in with the crowd. Her decrease in social status in school certainly helped this that was for sure. But Lydia didn’t care about that stuff anymore.

Between sips, she took the time to scan the room, searching for her friends. It wasn’t long before she noticed Stiles and Malia. They were dancing, or rather, Malia was. Stiles was just awkwardly moving around Malia, flailing arms and legs. Malia tried her best to go with it, but she didn’t look too happy about it. Lydia actually laughed at the sight; this was Stiles after all. The guy never failed to make her laugh, though she would never admit it. 

The laugh quickly died when she felt the pang in her heart as Stiles, in between songs, grabbed Malia’s hand and pulled her in for a kiss, a kiss that Malia didn’t appear happy to receive.

She continued looking around the room and found Scott and Kira, totally immersed in their own little world, dancing and looking like they were having a pretty good time. Lydia smiled. They looked good together, as much as it pained her to acknowledge this fact.

Lydia was so distracted by Scott and Kira that she didn’t notice until too late that Stiles and Malia appeared to be heading her way. Malia, even from halfway across the room, looked like she swallowed something sour. Lydia found herself dreading talking to them, but didn’t know what else to do, so she just stayed where she was, nursing her punch.

“Lydia, hi,” Stiles said, “It’s good to see you.” He was in a good mood, his smile wide, eyes sparkling and Lydia didn’t think it was the punch. Lydia couldn’t help but enjoy the way his eyes immediately scanned her up and down, taking in her red dress. Malia scowled.

“Hi,” Lydia said, trying not to wince at how fake cheery she sounded. She didn’t like how Malia was acting. Something was wrong. “You guys are looking good out there. Really taking out that dance floor.”

Stiles grinned. “Did you hear that, Malia? We weren’t as bad out there as you thought.” Malia frowned.

“Whatever,” Malia said. “What does Lydia know anyway?”

Lydia froze. That was certainly harsh, wasn’t it? “Yeah, you know, I’m not much a dancer myself,” she said awkwardly. 

Lydia could have easily retaliated with a smarter response, but knew it certainly won’t go over well in these circumstances. Malia was someone she did not want to mess with on a normal day (though at times Lydia certainly did and secretly enjoyed every minute of it), but this was not a normal day, if Malia’s ever deepening scowl was any indication. Plus, she didn’t want to start a scene. 

Stiles cleared his throat, sensing the tension. “You know, I’m feeling a little hypoglycemic over here. It must be all that dancing! What do you say we go get some food, Malia?”

Malia didn’t say a word, but took the arm that Stiles offered her. She let him lead her away, but not before she turned and glared at Lydia.

Lydia waited until Malia’s back was turned and then rolled her eyes. How stupid was this? Why did she always find herself in the midst of such juvenile drama? Sure, she really liked Stiles, but they had come to her just now, didn’t they?

Lydia shook her head. This was it. Enough. She was done. Totally done. Lydia downed the rest of her drink and was about to head out of the gym to get some air and then leave this lame dance when Kira and Scott appeared before her.

“I’m glad you made it,” Kira said. “Was afraid you would bail on me.”

“Really?” Lydia asked. “It seems like you guys bailed on _me_ , seeing as I’m the one who came alone and had to have my mom drop me off because _someone_ was late and wasn’t even ready.” She glared at Kira and Scott.

“I take responsibility for that, obviously,” Scott hastily said, “If I was ready then I would have been at Kira’s sooner and at the right time when she had originally called me. Sorry about that Lydia.” 

“Apology accepted, I guess” Lydia said. “But it doesn’t mean I’m happy about it.”

“Yeah, well, we just wanted to say hi,” Kira said. “Come join us on the dance floor!”

“Yeah…no,” Lydia said. “I think I’ll just stay here with the comfort of my punch. You _are_ driving me home, right?”

“Yes, we’ll drive you home, so do whatever you want.” Kira rolled her eyes. “Within reason of course,” she added, “I’m in no mood to drag a drunk Lydia into the car in this nice dress.”

Lydia laughed. “With how pathetically weak this punch is, you certainly wouldn’t have that problem. Someone obviously didn’t spike it enough. Don’t they know this is a lame school dance? The only thing exciting about it would be the alcohol.”

Scott smiled at this. He turned to Kira, “Come on, let’s go do some more dancing.” He pulled Kira away and back into the middle of the gym. 

Lydia watched them with a pang. As Scott whirled Kira around, Lydia was reminded of the Winter Formal, when that was Allison in Scott’s arms. She missed them. She occasionally yearned for those times; they were far simpler, that’s for sure. She wanted her best friend back. She wanted her Stiles back. 

And as for Jackson, well, while she would always love him to an extent, he may be the only one she didn’t really miss as much. Besides a few emails back and forth, they will forever be friends, but that would be the extent of their relationship from now on. That relationship had been more toxic than anything.

The lights suddenly dimmed in the gym to the point that Lydia could only make out the shapes of everyone, but not their faces. This was definitely going to make it more difficult to keep an eye on her friends. The group on the dance floor was now a gigantic moving blob. She could make out the shapes of other people among the perimeter of the gym, talking, drinking and kissing.

There was one particular couple in the far corner that caught Lydia’s eye. They were quite passionately making out—well, sort of. Lydia squinted. A girl with long flowing hair was backed into the corner, while the guy was nuzzling her neck. The guy was definitely more into it. Hmm. 

Lydia was kind of embarrassed to admit it, but this was certainly interesting to watch. She even felt a pang of jealousy. She couldn’t remember the last time she had felt a guy’s lips upon her skin. Ok, that was kind of an exaggeration. It’s been 4 months and 22 days, but who’s counting?

Lydia crept closer to the couple, hugging the wall so she was now only a few yards away. If she strained her ears and blocked out the music, she can just barely hear what they were saying. 

The kissing soon halted and the guy took something out of his pocket, seeming to make a kind of proposal. Lydia couldn’t make out what he said.

The girl immediately stiffened. “You asshole! You want to do this _now_ , of all times?” Her voice was rising in volume with each word, making it much easier for Lydia to hear. She pushed him in the chest. “How about you care to explain this, first, huh?” 

She took something out of her purse, balled it up in her fist and threw it at him. The guy stepped back in surprise and caught the paper. It seemed to only take a second for him to realize what it was.

“Look,” he said, “I thought we talked about this before!”

The girl snorted. “Well, apparently not enough.” She stormed away.

“Wait, I can explain,” he began. “It doesn’t mean anything—”

The girl laughed, her back now turned to him. “Oh, yes, it does.”

“No, it doesn’t! We discussed this—”

In one swift movement, the girl whirled back around. “You know, what? Fuck you! FUCK. YOU!” Then she punched the guy in the face. He instantly fell to the floor. Immediately there were gasps as people realized what had happened. 

A crowd formed around the couple and teachers were instantly onto the girl, wrenching her away from the scene. Lydia wanted to go over to help but decided against it on account of the amount of people already coming to the aid of the guy. She hoped he was ok. That was quite a hit.

Lydia continued to watch the scene, but soon lost track of what happened to the guy in the sea of people who now surrounded him. She was sure with the way everyone reacted that he got the help he needed.

She shook her head. Did people always have to be this violent? Lydia helped herself to another drink and a cupcake, overhearing people comment about the fight.

“Did you _see_ that?”

“I still haven’t gotten over her punch to be honest.” 

“God, what a _woman_!” 

Lydia rolled her eyes. She was all for female empowerment, but this was all rather ridiculous. What happened to actually talking things out? Discussing the problem at hand? She knew better than anyone how secrets got in the way of any relationship. Honesty was important.

It was starting to get stuffy in the gym so Lydia decided to go out for the fresh air she had intended to get earlier before Kira and Scott came up to her.

Lydia left out of the back doors of the gym that led to the wooded area and forest behind the school. She knew it was dangerous, especially considering everything that seemed to happen in Beacon Hills, but she just wanted some quiet to think about things.

There was a stream along the back of the school which Lydia walked toward. That is, until she saw a guy sitting nearby. Lydia stepped forward a few more steps to get a closer look and froze. It was Stiles.


	3. Chapter 3

What was she going to do? Lydia didn’t want to bother him, he appeared deep in thought. She cautiously took a step back and naturally, stepped on a twig. _Snap_. Stiles whirled around. _Shit,_ Lydia thought.

“Lydia?” Stiles asked curiously. He sounded different.

“Stiles, is that you?” Lydia decided to pretend dumb.

“Yeah.” He said nothing else and Lydia frantically tried to decide what to do. Should she go over there? Malia was nowhere to be found. But did Stiles want to be alone?

Lydia decided to approach him and see how he reacted. If it seemed Stiles didn’t want her there, then she would always leave.

Lydia went to sit down beside him. That was when she noticed he was holding up a plastic bag of ice to his eye.

“Oh my god, Stiles! What happened?” Lydia asked in horror. The minute the words came out of her mouth the realization dawned on her. How did she not see this  
before? Her drink must have been stronger than she had thought.

“Isn’t it obvious?” He said bitterly.

“That…that guy that got punched, that was you…and Malia did it,” Lydia wondered aloud. “Oh, Stiles, I am so sorry.”

He took away the pack of ice to switch to the other cooler side of the bag and Lydia winced. His left eye was swollen and practically closed. A bruise was already forming around the entire eye. “That bad, huh?” 

Lydia bit her lip and nodded. 

“Can’t say I didn’t deserve it.” He placed the ice back on his eye.

“I doubt that,” she said.

“Regardless, I should have known from the first time she punched me back at Eichen House that this relationship was not going to end well. It was an indication that this relationship was doomed from the start. This punch hurt more than the first, if that’s even possible.”

“Yeah,” Lydia said, “I heard that punch loud and clear from where I was standing all the way across the gym. It was quite a shot.”

“That it certainly was.” Stiles flinched as he placed the ice back up to his eye. 

“Wait a minute,” Lydia said, trying to piece together what she saw. “This whole thing started with you pulling out a—”She had an inkling but still refused to believe it.

“A condom.” He flushed and turned away from her. “It wasn’t like we hadn’t done it before,” he mumbled. “And I just thought, rather stupidly looking back at it now, that I don’t know, having sex would fix things between us. She had been weirdly distant the whole night.”

Lydia’s eyes widened. She knew that Stiles and Malia were sleeping together, that much was obvious, but hearing it first hand like this from Stiles was a bit too much information for her. Lydia didn’t like thinking about Stiles having sex with anyone, let alone Malia. “A-a condom? Wait…what did she take out of her purse?”

“It was just a little thing I wrote for you before me and Malia started going out. That I had attached to a picture of a tree you had drawn that I framed for you. I was going to give it to you but never did. I’m guessing she found it. She knows how I feel about you and we discussed it. I thought she was ok with it. I guess not.”

Lydia remembered that picture. She had seen it in Stiles’ room when he had disappeared back during his possession days. Lydia, consumed with worry, was so distracted with the search and trying to use her banshee powers to find Stiles, that she had totally ignored it at the time. Boy, did she regret it now.

To her surprise, Stiles took the crumpled note out of his pocket and handed it to her, not quite meeting her gaze.

Hesitantly, Lydia took the note and debated whether to read it or not. She decided against it, now didn’t seem like the time. 

“Keep it,” Stiles said. “It’s not like you don’t already know anyway.” He stared straight ahead into the darkness that shrouded them. 

Lydia cleared her throat nervously. Maybe this was the time to say something to him after all about her brewing feelings. “I’m not exactly sure how to put this, Stiles…” This was it. This couldn’t be a better time to tell him...right?

Stiles clearly wasn’t paying attention, however. “Just look at me. I just can’t believe what I’ve become.” He shook his head sadly. “Malia is right. I really am an asshole. I can just imagine...” He stopped for a moment and took a deep breath. “My mom would be so disappointed in me if she were here.”

He sniffed and a tear escaped his good eye. Lydia didn’t know what to do. 

Stiles continued, “I bet she’s looking from wherever she is, happy that I’m no longer her responsibility, that I’m my dad’s problem now. Heck, my dad would be livid if he knew what happened. I’m just some ADHD kid who can’t ever get anything right. No matter what, I’m always the human. The lame sidekick best friend to a werewolf. A guy who was so weak he got himself possessed and killed loads of people in the process. A loser who can’t even keep a relationship with a girl.”

Lydia shook her head. “No, you’re not.”

Stiles laughed bitterly. “Yeah, I am.”

“No, you’re not,” Lydia said fiercely. Stiles remained silent, which frustrated Lydia. How could he not see?

Lydia decided to just tell the truth, say everything she was truly feeling. Well, almost everything.

“I think your mom is looking down and sees a boy who, despite all the hardships, is still standing. A boy who got up time and time again, willing to sacrifice himself and go against all odds to save people, especially those he loves, regardless of the danger of being human. A boy who, after all the evil he’s seen and experienced, still loves. That is most certainly nothing to be ashamed of. In fact, it’s something to be proud of.”

Lydia held her breath. Was what she said ok?

There were a few minutes of silence, as if Stiles had to process what she said. He then suddenly looked over at her in amazement; Lydia’s words had finally registered. The moonlight hit his eyes in such a way that the honey color in the brown glowed against the darkness. 

“You—you really think that?” Lydia could detect a hint of hope in his voice. His eyes were glassy. 

“I don’t think it. I know it.” Lydia said. “And you know what? I love you for it. And everybody else does too.”

Stiles sniffled. Lydia leaned forward and wiped a tear away with her thumb. They were just a couple of inches apart at this point. Lydia didn’t know what overcame her, but she reached out and grabbed him, bringing him in for a hug. She felt his tears upon her neck. Lydia felt like crying herself, seeing him like this. It was almost like when he had his panic attack, except this was worse.

“Just remember, Stiles,” she whispered softly “I love you, no matter what.” Lydia didn’t think he heard her through all his sniffling, but she didn’t dare repeat what she said. She held him like that for a few minutes. Lydia was almost afraid to breathe or do anything, for fear of ruining the moment. 

Stiles hesitantly pulled away a while later. He looked up at her, his wet eyelashes framing his eyes so they appeared a lighter honey color than ever. Lydia stared back. She felt very awkward. Not knowing what else to do, she left a kiss on his tear stained cheek, tasting the salt on her lips.

Lydia couldn’t bear to stare into those hurt tear filled eyes any longer and with that, she awkwardly got up from her knees and stumbled up the hill. She realized that that whole conversation left her feeling rather wobbly on her feet. Why did she always feel this way when it came to Stiles? She had a feeling it was dangerous, especially since as far as she knew, punch or not, Malia and Stiles seemed to still be together.

Lydia sighed and suddenly finding herself rather chilly, walked the rest of the way into the gym to hitch a ride with Scott and Kira, the note still clutched tightly in her hand.


	4. Chapter 4

The next day, Lydia woke up bright and early to try and get some of that boring Chemistry homework done. She absolutely loved the Chemistry lab work, but hated the homework assignments, which consisted of solving chemical equations. The first 5 or so were fun, but once given 45 of the same equations, she wanted to gouge her eyes out. The sooner she was done, the sooner she could move on to reading about the French Revolution, which sounded much more exciting at this point.

Lydia just settled herself down in front of her desk when she noticed the note from Stiles. She had shoved it in her purse once she entered the gym and then promptly forgot about it in the chaos of finding Scott and Kira among a crowd of drunk teenagers. Now it sat on her desk, along with the rest of the purse’s contents from the night before. Cell phone. Lip gloss. A hair tie. 

Should she open it? For some reason, Lydia hesitated. She knew what it said, but she just couldn’t bear herself to look. For some unexplained reason, she just felt scared. Scared of her feelings. Scared of his feelings, stated so often, but that still always caught her off guard. Scared of what they meant for her and Stiles. Once she read the note, there was no turning back. They would have to talk about all this. And what about Malia? It got complicated with another person in the picture. She honestly didn’t expect Stiles to just suddenly leave Malia. 

Taking a deep breath, she opened the note and read: _To Lydia: I have loved you and will continue to love you no matter what. Never forget how special you are. Don’t let anyone ever tell you otherwise. You are worth so much more than you realize, especially to me. This picture is beautiful so I framed it for you. I hope that’s ok. Love, Stiles._ Lydia swallowed and her hands shook as she held the note. She didn’t expect it to be so simple and straight to the point. But then, this was Stiles.  


“Love you no matter what…” She spoke the words softly aloud. Lydia had said those exact words to Stiles the night before. She sat there in disbelief as she remembered clutching Stiles and stating the words. They had fallen out of her mouth so easily. There was so much more significance to them now. 

She had watched this gangly awkward—albeit endearing—boy with a big heart grow up into a man. One who shouldered all responsibility; one wasn’t afraid to stand up for his friends and everything he believed in against all the supernatural creatures they faced. He was human through it all and will probably always remain so. But it didn’t matter. He was her human. Lydia’s human. 

It took Lydia a minute or two of staring at the note to realize as her vision blurred that she was crying. But it was happy crying. She now knew with ultimate clarity what she had to do, now more than ever. She just hoped it wasn’t too late.

The doorbell rang, forcing Lydia out of her thoughts. She sighed and quickly padded down the stairs, hoping it would be something quick. Lydia had to talk to Stiles.

It turned out she didn’t have to wait long. Lydia was astounded to find Stiles on her doorstep. Once more, he managed to find her at her worst. Lydia still had stubborn eye makeup remaining from the night before, now smudged she was sure, and her hair was a tangled mess of curls that resembled a birds nest. She hadn’t felt like washing it the night before.

However, Stiles didn’t look that much neater to be honest. His hair was adorably sticking up in all directions and he had dark circles under his eyes. At least he had managed to find a non wrinkled t-shirt to wear under his signature plaid paired with the khaki pants. 

Lydia watched Stiles’ eyes alight on her appearance. His mouth twitched but he immediately sombered when he met her eyes. 

“Lydia,” he said slowly, “I’ve been thinking about last night. It was all I can think about it, to be honest. And I need to know, did you really mean what you said?”

Lydia tried to think back to what she said last night. She had said so much. What exactly was he referring to? She told Stiles she loved him, but did he hear her? She wasn’t sure. But then, did it even matter anymore if he had or not? Lydia had promised herself she would tell him about her feelings, right? Except, now, she was hesitant. She couldn’t help but think that no matter Stiles’ feelings for her, he would still choose Malia over her. After all, Malia had given him a chance, something Lydia had never done. 

She faltered. “Why wouldn’t I?” She countered. Lydia raised her head and despite her nerves, stared him straight in the eye. This was rather hard to do though; Lydia wasn’t wearing her normal pair of heels. Instead, she was barefoot and being only 5’3”, had to crane her head quite a bit to look up at Stiles.

Now it was Stiles’ turn to be under the microscope. He swallowed nervously. 

“Ok,” he said carefully. He took a deep breath and took a step closer to her. “Lydia, I’m going to try something. If you don’t like it, you have every right to push me away. I just, I really want to do this.”

Lydia was confused. “Stiles, what are you—” Lydia didn’t even get the entire sentence out for in one swift movement, Stiles had gently grabbed her arm, pulling her toward him and pressed his lips to hers. 

It was perfect.

Stiles finally pulled away, looking nervous. “Was that….was I okay? Was this okay? I mean, you kissed me back so...”

Lydia replied with the only words that were bouncing around her head in this kiss induced state. 

“It was perfect.” 

“Are you sure? You’re not--you’re not lying? Because if you are--” 

“Why would I lie?” Lydia questioned. Her eyes alighted on a wrapped rectangular shaped package Stiles was holding in one hand. Lydia knew immediately it was her drawing. There was no question about it. A kind of giddy feeling started to erupt inside her.

“I don’t know! Maybe because I’ve liked you for so long...I don’t know...I can’t believe this is really happening, I mean--”

“Stiles, just shut up.” She rolled her eyes, that newfound giddy feeling completely immersing her insides, spreading its warmth. Lydia let this rush overtake her and smiled widely up at Stiles. 

_This was it._ Stiles, at first confused, now smiled back at her as she reached forward and pulled him towards her for another kiss. Lydia basked in the warmth that spread within her from her head to the very tips her toes. This was a kiss that she wouldn’t be ending anytime soon, that was for sure,


End file.
